Tyr
Tyr was a Titanic Watcher and the mightiest of the nine Titan Keepers. He once resided at the Temple of Order, but was absent during the time of Loken's rebellion. Tyr died fighting against Loken's minions, after Loken's betrayal was made known to both Tyr and Archaedas. He was buried in a tomb beneath a lake in what is now known as Tirisfal Glades, named in honor of his ultimate sacrifice. Tyr's influence is heavily felt in Human culture, in which is a household name and an inspiration for Paladins. Appearance Tyr had silver skin and golden hair. A thick, long mustache extends down to Tyr's chest. Tyr's eyes were yellow and lack pupils, and Kalecgos compared them to those of a night elf. He often wore a cloak and hood, and an octagonal object was strapped to his silver belt. The artifact's purpose was a sort of recording device, meant to remind the Aspects of their greatest moments should they ever feel as though they did not deserve their powers. Underneath his cloak, Tyr wore a crimson tunic and no armor save for shin guards. A band with diamond patterns wrapped just above his right elbow and a crimson cape attached to his tunic with a high, pointed collar. After one of his hands was eaten by Galakrond, Tyr replaced it with a closed fist made of silver. Tyr had the ability to make his body appear much smaller than it actually was, about the size of a night elf or tall human. It is unclear if Tyr actually shank or the shrinking was only an illusion. History Tyr was one of the keepers created by the Pantheon to lead the titan-forged armies against the forces of the Old Gods during the War between the Titans and the Old Gods. Tyr was imbued with strength and courage by Aggramar. Together with Odyn, he battled and defeated Ragnaros the Firelord. During the era just after the Ordering of Azeroth, Tyr observed the proto-dragons from the shadows, particularly the intelligent ones such as Malygos. When the massive Galakrond began devouring proto-dragons and the victims became undead, Tyr made his presence known to Malygos and asked for the clever blue's help, as well as the help of Malygos's companions. Tyr made some vague wordings that imply Galakrond's mutations were his doing though things did not turn out as he had hoped. Tyr explained that his fellow Watchers would not face the danger of Galakrond as they are not tied to Azeroth like its native species are, and so he all but begged Malygos for aid. Later, Tyr used an undead proto-dragon to catch the attention of Ysera and Alexstrasza. Some time after, Malygos found his way to the three of them. He believed that something about Ysera was special, and it was a facet of her that must be encouraged and explored. After the threat of Galakrond had passed for the moment, Tyr confronted Malygos about the blue being bitten by the undead proto-dragons and that the hunger to consume flesh was now within him. He then proposed hunting Galakrond, and decided to stand by the proto-dragons this time, revealing a war hammer from beneath his cloak. Lastly he pulled out the octagonal artifact, moving it to the three proto-dragons as it glowed, with the promise that he was "trying to ensure some future." depiction of Tyr and "Galakrond".]] Galakrond returned outside the cavern, chasing Neltharion and Nozdormu. Malygos and Tyr moved to the entrance to witness their battle, and Tyr was overjoyed at the proto-dragons' coordination. Alexstrasza, Malygos and a now full-sized Tyr joined in the battle. Temporarily stunning Galakrond with his hammer, Tyr ordered the proto-dragons to flee as he stayed to battle the monster. An unknown time later, Tyr met with the five proto-dragons, informing them that Galakrond was sleeping in a mountain range to the north and that it was the perfect time to attack. He told them to eat before doing so, and just before they left Tyr held the octagonal artifact before Nozdormu and Neltharion as he had to the others before. After doing so, Tyr vanished in the blink of an eye. Tyr and the proto-dragons met up near Galakrond's slumbering place, which Kalecgos would later note in his visions was nowhere near Galakrond's Rest. Save for Ysera, they all began the battle against Galakrond, who had grown larger and even more mutated than before. Throughout the battle, the octagonal object on Tyr's belt glowed ever brighter. When Galakrond suddenly expanded in size without warning, Tyr's hammer could no longer harm him. With a flap of wings, Galakrond called up a massive wind that scattered the fighters. Ysera suddenly appeared and Galakrond attempted to devour her, but Tyr silenced his laughter with a mighty blow from his hammer. Tyr pulled Galakrond to the ground and began to mercilessly beat him even as Galakrond began mutating further - as he began to resemble a true dragon. In the battle, Tyr's hammer and the strange artifact were knocked free from his person. Tyr reached to grab the artifact, just as Galakrond's massive maw came within range and the monster clamped down on Tyr's hand. Malygos moved to save Tyr, examining the bloody stump as Galakrond roared in triumph and grew ever larger. An unconscious Tyr was brought to a frozen lake by the proto-dragons, only to vanish from the shore. While the proto-dragons believed some beast had taken him for food, Kalec felt something more intelligent had taken Tyr. When the proto-dragons later met two other Watchers, they revealed that they were the ones to bring Tyr home. Galakrond was ultimately defeated when Malygos and Neltharion lodged a boulder in his throat, choking the monster to death. Tyr's friend Jotun would later help Tyr replace his severed hand with a closed fist made of silver,9 and also added Tyr's new silver hand symbol onto his hammer.8 In the battle, Tyr's hammer and the Spark of Tyr were knocked free from his person. Tyr reached to grab the Spark, just as Galakrond's massive maw came within range and the monster clamped down on Tyr's hand. Malygos moved to save Tyr, examining the bloody stump as Galakrond roared in triumph and grew ever larger. Loken's rebellion .]]When one of his fellow keepers, Loken, fell to corruption, only Tyr and Archaedas did not fall victim to Loken's schemes. Tyr had long suspected something was wrong with Loken, so he was not caught by surprise. However, since Loken had vast armies at his disposal, Tyr, Archaedas, and their friend Ironaya hid in the outskirts of the Storm Peaks to plan their next move. After looking for them and not finding them, Loken assumed they had fled far away from Ulduar. Loken later instigated the Winterskorn War, fought between the Winterskorn vrykul and the earthen. During the war, Tyr and his companions were approached with pleas of help by the beleaguered earthen. Tyr and his friends immediately emerged from their hiding place to lead the earthen and attack the Winterskorn, eventually driving them back for a while. Tyr, alongside his companion Archaedas, forged a shield named Truthguard and gave it to a vrykul champion named Yrgrim the Truthseeker to help expose Loken's treachery. This allowed them to convert many vrykul to their cause. After the Winterskorn came back, now riding on proto-dragons, Tyr called the Dragon Aspects to help them put a final stop to their war. With their help, they defeated the vrykul and put most of the Winterskron in deep hibernation. After defeating the Winterskorn, Tyr decided it was time to take the fight to Loken. Otherwise, he would continue creating conflicts and destroying everything he could reach. Tyr and his allies decided to steal the Discs of Norgannon to investigate the extent of Loken's betrayal. Tyr came to Ulduar's entrance to distract Loken with requests for him to relinquish control of Ulduar. Meanwhile, Archaedas and Ironaya infiltrated Ulduar and stole the Discs. They then escaped back through the Storm Peaks, and prepared to flee far away from that area, in order to find a new refuge where they could analyze the data and plan their attack. Tyr was able to gather many titan-forged that would accompany them in their journey: vrykul already afflicted by the Curse of Flesh, most of the surviving earthen and many mechagnomes. Jotun, Tyr's friend, stayed behind to try to stop Loken from pursuing them. Tyr's death caretakers.]] Discovering the theft of the Discs, Loken panicked, thinking that if the Pantheon were to look at the information in the Discs, his life would be forfeit. Out of desesperation, Loken sent horrific C'Thraxxi monsters after Tyr's group, known as Zakajz the Corruptor and Kith'ix. After many weeks they found Tyr and his companions, far to the south, in a tranquil glade. Tyr ordered Archaedas and Ironaya to flee further south with the rest, while he remained to hold off the C'Thraxxi. They fought for six days and six nights, and eventually, Tyr decided to sacrifice his life to protect his friends. He unleashed all his remaining energy in a blinding explosion, killing Zakazj and dying as well. The severely wounded Kith'ix fled to the west and did not come back. In honor of her friend, Ironaya named the glade "Tyr's Fall", which in the vrykul tongue translated to Tirisfal. They built a tomb and buried Tyr and his foe where they lay. Then they created a shrine to Tyr out of his silver hand atop his tomb, as a memorial to his sacrifice. His hammer, The Silver Hand, was stored inside the tomb as well. The vrykul were so moved by Tyr's sacrifice that they decided to settle at the battle site and guard Tyr's grave forever. Archaedas, Ironaya, and the rest, continued south and ended up settling in Uldaman. Hour of Twilight Kalecgos found Tyr's recording device still clutched in his severed hand at Galakrond's Rest. As Kalec is rocked by visions of the war against Galakrond, he often caught brief glimpses of Tyr observing him only for Tyr to vanish before Kalec could get a clear look. After reminding the Aspects of their duties via Tyr's recording device, Kalec once again thought he saw Tyr standing at Galakrond's Rest. Delving the Tomb Around the time of the Battle for the Broken Shore, a remnant group of the Twilight's Hammer, lead by the Twilight Bishop, found and opened Tyr's Tomb, hoping to awaken Zakajz the Corruptor, and possibly corrupt the body of the dead watcher, to bring about the end of Azeroth. Sometime after the Tomb was broken open, a priest and warrior, respectively had delved into the Tomb and retrieved the artifacts they sought, and having killed the Twilight's Hammer members they could find, they left the Tomb behind. Later on, a paladin, seeking The Silver Hand itself, traveled to Galakrond's Rest to find a paladin named Galford who had a Spark of Tyr and had gone to Northrend to learn more about Tyr. Galford was killed by Tyr's old friend Jotun, who had been cursed by Loken to attack any ally of Tyr's, but not before he had succeeded in using the Spark to see memories of Jotun aiding Tyr. After being defeated, Jotun allowed the Spark of Tyr to be taken. The paladin then delved into the Tomb alongside its guardians, and after killing the remaining dark forces found within, retrieved the Silver Hand. Due to a failsafe that was connected to the Silver Hand, the tomb then collapsed, preventing further incursions, so as to protect Tyr's secrets forever. Myth and Legacy Not even the Dragon Aspects know much of Tyr, who hasn't been seen since before their evolution from Proto Dragons. Consequently, there is much speculation among the races of Azeroth regarding this mysterious Watcher. Vrykul .]] The vrykul came to know of the battle and wrote down at least the basic details, including Tyr's name, that he owned a warhammer, that he lost his hand while battling an unfathomable evil, and how he chose to replace it with a silver fist rather than make himself whole again. The vrykul interpreted this to mean that true order and justice can only be accomplished through personal sacrifice. The Titanic watcher's revered status among the Vrykul has been shown through their naming of Tyr's Terrace at the edge of Utgarde Keep. The vrykul tale of Tyr and other stories from their culture were left with vrykul offspring that had been affected by the Curse of Flesh and hidden away from Northrend by their parents; a distant connection to the civilization they could not live in. After Tyr's death, a particularly loyal sect of vrykul migrated to Tirisfal, constructing his tomb. They formed Tyr's Guard, which eventually became a secret order of human protectors, who took over as the vrykul died off. Humans The offspring prospered and their descendants became known as humans. As the young race of struggled to survive using the limited supplies provided to them by the parents who had abandoned them, much of the story of Tyr changed over time. The true origin of humanity slipped into memory long ago, but Tyr's story was not forgotten. Early humans occasionally took to gathering around the fire whilst trying to read from scrolls telling of ancient heroes and leaders – tales from the civilization that had cast these creatures out. One of these scrolls spoke of a great leader, a paragon of order and justice, who sacrificed his right hand in a fight against an unfathomable evil. Although it was within this hero's power to fix his hand after the fighting had ended, the hero instead chose to replace it with a closed fist made of the purest silver. In this way, the hero impressed upon those who followed him that true order and justice can only be accomplished through personal sacrifice. The tale of Tyr was a source of inspiration to humanity, particularly to paladins. Thus, the Knights of the Silver Hand took their name and symbol from the myth of Tyr and his silver hand. depicts Tyr's Silver Hand.]] Cities such as Tyr's Hand were also named after Tyr. In Stratholme's Cathedral of Light, there was a stainglass depicting Tyr, as humans imagine him. The Watcher was imagined as a proud, regal warrior of broad features and noble bearing. Surrounded by a halo of golden light, Tyr held a mighty warhammer in one hand and a large, leatherbound tome in the other. The inscription on the tome read: "Esarus thar no’Darador" ("By Blood and Honor We Serve"). Tyr is a household name among many humans, and his adventures are often spoken of to children before they sleep. Human forenames are often derived from Tyr, such as Tyrathan, Tyris and Tirion. The very land of Tirisfal was named after the watcher and his ultimate sacrifice. One denomination of light worshipers, known as Tyrism, go as far as to revere Tyr as a paragon of virtue and and arbiter of Justice towards enemies of the Light. A similar version of light worship exists in Southern Kalimdor among the Tanari, who instead divide such tenets among Tyr and a different pantheon of watchers. During the third invasion of the Burning Legion, Tyr's Guard made their return to the public. However, over the ensuing battles, their numbers dwindled to only one man, known as Travard. Category:Pantheon of Titans Category:Order of the Silver Hand Category:Human Category:Vrykul Category:Titanic Watchers